Temple University Athletics
Temple University
Cincinnati
Burkert and Matautia Lead Volleyball to First-Ever American Athletic Conference Win, 3-1 at Cincinnati
9.27.13 | Women's Volleyball
CINCINNATI, Ohio - Strong performances from Elyse Burkert and Gabriella Matautia led Temple volleyball to a 3-1 win in its first-ever American Athletic Conference match at Cincinnati on Friday night. The Owls (10-3, 1-0) got double-doubles from both players, and a third from setter Sandra Sydlik.
Temple beat Cincinnati (0-13, 0-1) by scores of 25-22, 17-25, 25-20 and 25-23.
The Owls have struggled on the road at times in the past few seasons, and to start conference play on the road in a tough venue was a big test for Temple.
"It's unbelievable," said Temple head coach Bakeer Ganes. "This place is not easy to play at, regardless of the record of the other team. It's a great volleyball venue. Cincinnati has a rich tradition and a long history of success. They have a big crowd and a hostile crowd, and it's a very tough place to compete.
"Cincinnati is not a pushover team. When they put everything together, they'll be a dangerous team. This was a great win for us. I want to give credit to my coaching staff because they worked really hard all week to break down Cincinnati. They did a tremendous job and it really helped us tonight."
Burkert, returning from injury after missing the last six matches, made her presence known with a match-high 17 kills along with 17 digs. Matautia started slow offensively but totaled 11 kills and zero errors in the third and fourth sets, finishing with 14 kills for the night. She also tied Cincinnati's libero for match-high honors in digs with 21.
"I've been waiting a long time to get back," said Burkert. "I feel pretty good. Not quite back to normal but pretty good."Â Burkert also talked about how ready the team was to get a win in their first conference game.
"We had a lot of energy," she said. "We were really excited to start conference play and really wanted to get this game. It's hard to be on the road and start on the road. I think we just knew what we wanted to do and we kept working until the game was over."
Sydlik recorded 13 digs to go with 39 assists, and Alyssa Drachslin tallied 16 digs for Temple. Tyler Davis put up nine kills, and Kirsten Overton led the Owls with five blocks.
Temple out-hit Cincinnati .273 to .189 in the first set, and won 25-22 on the back of Burkert who recorded five kills in the set. Caroline Grattan gave Temple set point with a kill, and after a block by the Bearcats, Overton put the set away with a kill for the Owls.
Temple made a run late in the second set after falling into a hole, but it was a little too late. Cincinnati recorded 15 team kills to the Owls' eight, and won the set 25-17.
Tyler Davis knocked down kills for three of Temple's final four points in the third set, which the Owls led by a solid margin nearly the entire way. They nearly doubled their team kills from the second set, recording 15 total.
Six kills from Matautia helped the Owls win the fourth set and the match. They trailed by three points at 19-16, and still trailed by two at 22-20 before coming back to win. Matautia had two kills and a block in that final push, recording a kill for set point and teaming up with Overton for the block that ended the match.
Temple will be back in action on Sunday at preseason conference favorite Louisville, playing a Cardinals team that advanced to the NCAA Second Round last season.
